On August 27th, 2021, it was a sunny and clear day at San Francisco Pen Show, an event that draws pen and analog enthusiasts from around the country. In the bright space of the foyer, we unveiled PLOTTER for the first time in the United States. PLOTTER started in Tokyo, Japan in 2017, and to this date, had only been sold outside of Japan at Eslite Bookstore in Taiwan.
PLOTTER is an analog system that includes a uniquely designed ring leather binder, thoughtfully created refills with quality paper, and writing instruments like our award-winning brass pen. We design and create tools that enrich people’s lives and hope to make creative work more enjoyable. And it is a great honor that we were able to bring the tactile experience of trying out the system to an event like the pen show.
Why North America? As many of you may know, we are releasing PLOTTER USA Online Shop this October, debuting the brand officially in the US to reach more of our fans and audience. It would be a shame to not let users and analog lovers get a chance to feel and touch the products in person. To see for themselves the slim profile of the ring leather binders, hold the various sizes in their hands, and try out their favorite pens on our amazing paper.
Just like in Japan, we think there North America is a place where many users have a passion for quality stationery. As evident at the Pen Show, we met fountain pen lovers, pen collectors, ink stores, stationery retailers, stationery enthusiasts, and professionals from around the country. It’s truly an analog festival, and we enjoyed every moment of it.
Although the size of our booth isn’t that large, we tried to showcase as much about PLOTTER as possible. To give the audience the full PLOTTER experience, we brought the entire lineup that is available from our Japan Online Shop: A5 Size, Bible, Narrow, Mini 6, and Mini 5 size. Starting from our unique ring leather binders, we introduce accompanying refills and notepads to use with the system. It was a delight to see customers try out different accessory refills and see the sparks in their eyes as they think about how they might utilize these tools for their purpose.
Over the three days of the event, we talked to people who had used ring-system planners before, as well as customers who are trying it out for the first time. It’s interesting to learn about people’s habits and how they use their planners or notebooks. It didn’t feel like a sale event, but instead, it is a never-ending conversation about everyone’s writing and creative inspiration.
Over the first two days, we immediately sold out of the popular A5 Size ring leather binders. We think that the professionals and creatives we encountered would put the large creative canvas to good use. Fountain pen enthusiasts took a liking to our unique DP paper, proprietary to the Designphil brand that could withstand fountain pen inks, have little to no feathering, nor bleed through. We believe that beautiful inks and paper are a good pairing.
One of the most popular colors was the Pueblo leather series in navy color. Following closely is the blue color of Liscio leather. Is it a West Coast affinity to water that had customers take a liking to this color? A lot of customers also find the Narrow size interesting in its portability and convenience. We’re happy to bring something exciting and new to the ring-system users in the US.
The turnout of the SF Pen Show was a great success, with customers ranging from students to professionals, and from different cities around the country. Some customers even already acquired PLOTTER when they were abroad in Japan and were excited to see that they can now purchase refills in the US. Therefore, we’re so excited to launch PLOTTER USA for fans and users in North America.
Not only does PLOTTER help users enjoy creative work when they are alone, but we also hope that this analog PLOTTER tool will become a hub and inspire creative communication around the world.
San Francisco Pen Show
Aug 27 – 29th, 2021
Pullman San Francisco Bay Hotel
www.sfpenshow.com
